Better than Chocolate - Audiobook Sale

You just finished one of your major goals and marked it off on your list with a bright red marker.  Time for a reward!  The candy wrapper crinkles as you unwrap the candy bar.  The scent of chocolate fills yours your nose, your mouth starts watering.  You pop the chocolate into your mouth, exalt in the flavor for two seconds, chew, swallow . . . and wish for more. 

Instead of spending your money on something that only lasts for a couple of seconds, invest your money in something that will last forever.  An audiobook is something you can enjoy again and again.  Reward yourself from a range anywhere between a fantastic self-improvement book like “Zero Regrets,” or “The End of Overeating,” or lay back, relax, and laugh while you listen to “No Talking.”

If you’re a go-getter and never stop workin you can even listen to something action packed while you’re still working like “The Gideon the Cutpurse: The Time Travelers,” or “The Dragon's Eye” the first of The Erec Rex Series – all on sale now until November 22, 2011, just in time for your holiday travels.

No matter what you pick one thing books and chocolate always have in common is that they both leave you wishing for more . . . enjoy them now!

Adventures that Never Die

Swords clash, fire bursts, a dragon’s roar reverberates across the open field.  A man steps forwards, a thick brown staff in one hand.  A horse whinnies in the distance, pawing at the ground.  The old man smiles, lifts his hands, and begins his spell . . . 

From a boy who didn’t believe in growing up, to a white rabbit who could tell time, the magic in adventures of your childhood never really end.  El Zorro left more than a “Z” for his legacy – he left the memories of his blazing sword and flaring courage in your mind.  

There’s something that connects in the readers’ mind, when they remember these stories.  Remember how unrealistic Alice was to follow a rabbit down a hole, or Dorothy was for following a yellow brick road to an unknown place?  Perhaps it is her personality.  Anne of Green Gables is so influential because she still believes.  “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “The Three Musketeers,” “The Scarlet Pimpernel,” and “Ivanhoe,” each tell a different and captivating tale.  

“First Truth” is another tale to try for all adventure lovers, or “The Cheshire Cat's Eye.”

Whether it’s magic, or fairies, or yourself in which you still believe, the message of stories is not only enjoyable, but revitalizing.  Remember what drew you to these adventures.   Enjoy a good book again, or experience a new one.

The Great Detectives

A footstep in the darkness, a fingerprint on the window pane, a whisper in the wind . . .

Join in the adventure as your favorite detectives unravel the mystery.  From the moment a family member disappears to the desperate chase up the stairs and through the open window, enjoy every moment of these brilliant detective stories. 

Sit on the edge of your seat as Sherlock Holmes discovers the truth about his next case, or relish in the telling of “Blood Line,"  or “One for the Money” the first of the Stephanie Plum Series.

You never know how enthralling a story is until you find yourself alone in a room as the sun is setting.  Suddenly you hear a twig breaking outside, hear the call of a wild animal, feel someone’s eyes on you.  You stand up and close the window, rub the Goosebumps on your arms, roll your eyes at yourself . . . and never quite get over the feeling of alarm and exhilaration that had washed over you for just that one moment. 

Listen to a captivating detective case now and never be the same again.

Steve Jobs life redefining the Apple . . . and Six Industries

In the beginning there was the apple . . .

Imagine a world without Mac computers, or a world where you can’t call up your best friend when you’re lost or get instant directions because there is no such thing as an iPhone.  Would you miss your i-Pod?

Introducing the incredible life of Steve Jobs!  If you study the great philosophers and inventors of the world to learn from them and base your own life and goals off of their successes – this is a story you don’t want to miss.

Just like Thomas Edison with the light bulb, Benjamin Franklin with electricity, Gutenberg with the printing press, or Einstein and his Theory of Relativity, Steve Jobs has revolutionized the world.  He has changed forever our concept of:

• personal computers

• animated movies
• music
• phones
• tablet computing
• digital publishing

In honor of a man who has improved our lives and driven technology to the height it enjoys now!  Listen to Steve Jobs inspirational story, learn about this incredible man, a man who revolutionized six industries.  Get his new exclusive biography now at AmblingBooks.com.

Learn a Language

Salve!  –That’s how Julius Caesar would have said it in ancient Rome, (it means “Hello.”)
No matter what language it is in, a smiling face and a friendly word is always welcome – especially if you can understand what they are saying!  There are so many reasons to learn a new language.  Maybe you have just decided you want to learn French.  Or maybe you set a goal to learn Spanish as your new year’s resolution, but haven’t gotten around to it yet.  You’re going on a trip to Germany, but you haven’t learned German yet!  Your friend is learning Japanese and you want to learn it too. 

Now is the time to learn that second, or third language.  Learn Portuguese, Russian, Hebrew, Arabic, Chinese, or Italian.

Surprise you’re friends when they visit from Israel, or please your family when you pass you’re Spanish test.  Learning a new language will give you a new sense of empowerment, and a new way to connect to people. 

For now farewell, or, as Mark Antony would say, Vale!

Sports

Everyone knows that moment, when the crowds are cheering, the ref is shouting, and your heart is beating a million miles a minute.  Then it all fades away, there’s just you and your goal.  For one perfect moment, there you stand, frozen in a perfect moment – and you can do this.  You take a step forwards and everything flows perfectly.  For a moment you are unbeatable.

You win the competition, but you take away more than a win.  You take away that feeling of exultant invincibility. 

Whether it baseball, basketball, football, swimming, track, golfing, horseracing, cooking or one of a million other sports – it’s your passion.  Everyone deserves to have something that they enjoy, something they have a passion about. 

These kinds of stories are inspiring and stimulating, listen to “George Foreman's Guide to Life," “Zero Regrets: Be Greater Than Yesterday" by Apolo Ohno, or “Finding the Champion Within” by Bruce Jenner.  If you want to get specific, listen to a story specifically about golf, or baseball.

As long as you’re learning and improving, take a few minutes to learn more about what you really love.  Get your head in the game!

Animals are Our Best Friends

You’re an animal person. 

You love that:

• Hunting dog that you take on all your road trips
• Your poodle that loves to get all dolled up with bows and painted toenails
• That good old cat that sheds on your favorite lawn chair and purrs like a Ferrari
• The parrot who you’ve taught everything it knows

No matter what the pet, whether it’s a dog, cat, horse, hamster, or even reptilian, they hold a special place in our hearts.  Pet’s do amazing things, heroic stories about animals.  Wouldn’t the world be a boring place without kittens, or kangaroos? 

Visit some favorite stories about the animals you love.  Pet stories like “Beautiful Joe,” “White Fang,” "Black Beauty,” “Rin Tin Tin,” or New York Times Bestseller “The Underneath."  Enjoy hearing stories about the animals you have grown to love, listening to these and many more delightful stories.

“A (fill in your favorite animal here) is a man’s best friend.” 

A Fairytale

You run your hand across the old book, dry pages crinkle under the book’s cover, the binding is coming undone.  This is a well read and much loved book.  You open the cover to the front page and familiar words and phrases greet your eyes.  The tale begins – Once upon a time . . .

. . . There was a girl who went to a ball and lost her slipper.  There was a princess who fell asleep and didn’t wake up until her prince kissed her.  A prince was turned into a frog and had to find someone to break the spell.  An old witch offered a young girl an apple.

There is something magical and entrancing about each story.  Revisit favorite childhood favorites such as “The Sleeping Beauty and Other Fairy Tales from the Old French," or “Fifty Famous Fairy Tales."  Enjoy retellings of the classical tales that have enriched story-telling for centuries, or enjoy later authors and collaborators such as Hans Christian Andersen or the Brothers Grimm. 

Continue to enjoy and love these stories, which hold so much more in them than simply fairy godmothers and princes - although we certainly love them too! 

Is Energy a Crisis?

You’re car rumbles, making gravelly noises as it rolls to a stop.  You put your foot on the pedal, the engine snarls, but the car doesn’t move.  You sigh, you were supposed to fill up your car at the last gas station – your car knew it then, and you know it now.  But someday . . .

Maybe your car will fly; maybe it won’t need to eat gas to survive.  Instead of worrying about the condition of the future, (or ignoring it until you run out of gas), you can hope for the future!

“Powering the Future: How We Will (Eventually) Solve the Energy Crisis and Fuel the Civilization of Tomorrow” by Robert B. Laughlin.  “High Energy Living” by Sudhir Jonathan Foust.  “Peak Everything: Waking Up to the Century of Declines” by Richard Heinberg.

No fear.  Someday . . . the power won’t go out during a lightning storm, your cellphone won’t tell you there’s no service, and . . . you’re fridge will carry on a conversation with you?  - maybe not.  But for now you better just buy some more gas, and make plans ahead of time. 

So Romantic

Half the world seems to love twilight, the other half can’t seem to stand it.  Whether you adore Edward, or Jacob, or neither, there is a great selection of stories out there.  Personally I am a sucker for romances, love everything about them.

“The Hollow” by Jessica Verday is a great book, including a thrilling plot along with a surprising romance.  Nina Malkin  book “Swoon” which is described as “A spine-tingling collision of past and present, revenge and justice, lust and rage. True love has never been so truly terrifying" —Robin Wasserman, is also a fantastic read.

One of the most famous ideas in the world, is Shakespeare’s “star-crossed lovers.”  Although rather unrealistic, this idea is also extremely romantic.  And so the tradition continues . . .

Making Sense of the Classics

Have you ever felt like this?

You read Hamlet because your humanities teacher told you too and there was a test on it tomorow.  Now it all seems like one big blur in the back of your mind.  From “The Great Gatsby” to “Wuthering Heights,” you are told continually that there is something more to them than black words on white pages. But you read every (well, at least every other) word on those pages, and you don't seem to remember anything. 

Maybe “Sense and Sensibility” hasn’t made any sense to you since you read the title, or “Little Women” seemed  more interesting when you were younger, and you don’t even dare attempting the monotonous "Canterbury Tales" – is that even English! 

And yet, you want to be well read and well rounded.  Isn’t there some way to enjoy these books without wanting to pull your hair out (if that can be termed enjoyment)? 

Well, it's time to try them again.  You may find it easier to listen to these books, no daunting 8 point faunts, or scribles all over your used book.  Don’t read “The Picture of Dorian Gray” for a class, there is no need to cram “Oliver Twist” into one desperate night. 

Enjoy listening to these stories!

Your Favorite Book

Alright, today I would like to stimulate some discussion.  I’ve been trying to think of an interesting book to discuss, and decided to write on several of my favorite tragedies.  The kind of stories that leave your chest aching because it was so close to being something great – or it is a great book, but in a way that leaves you yearning.

One of the first books that came to mind was “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne.  Hester Prinn’s story is one of the deepest tragedies I’ve ever read.  In many ways I think her story lives on because her story envelops other’s stories.  She was young and carless, and made a choice in her life that she couldn’t go back and “fix.”  “The Scarlet Letter” is a story of devotion and endurance, where principles seem turned upside down, and where a young girl grows into a woman despite extreme social opposition.

Another favorite is “Ivanhoe” by Sir Walter Scott.  Although I will always adore the beautiful tale created here, there will always be that sense of loss.  The book ends the way it should, Ivanhoe marries the girl he has loved all his life, but there is always a sense of a love triangle – part of his heart that will always remember a young virtuous Jewish girl. 

Enough from me, what are some of your favorite books, and why?

Braving the Great Philosophers

Intimidating is the word.  You’ve never actually met the man, but just hearing his name makes you wince.  The worst part of it is, he’s been dead for years.

This man could be Milton, Socrates, Plato, Shakespeare, or even Charles Dickens.  Maybe the last time you read Dickens was the night before your ten page paper was due on his book, “A Tale of Two Cities” – back in high school.  Or perhaps you’ve attempted the feat of reading Shakespeare or Milton, but just haven’t been able to get into it enough to keep going.  – Maybe you love to read the Iliad, but just haven’t had time lately!

Now is the time to get involved in these all-time classics.  If it’s hard to find time in the day to sit down and read, now you don’t have to.  Audiobooks on the fly.  Philosophize with Plato while you make dinner, or listen to Paradise Lost while you drive to and from work every day.  Surf the net to “The Tempest.” 

No excuses, now is the time to take that step and listen to that book you’ve been meaning to, but just haven’t gotten around to reading yet.

More than History

The time machine beeps and shakes, you nearly fall over as the floor vibrates.  There’s a musky smell leaking into the enclosed space, and then – nothing.  No movement or sound.  A door opens soundlessly and you find yourself staring at . . .

Maybe it’s dinosaurs you see, pterodactyls swooping through the sky.  Or it could be a certain person you’re looking for – maybe you are standing on the very road that Queen Elizabeth’s carriage will be riding down any minute.  Maybe you’ve gone back to Rome, you want to hear Mark Antony’s speech with your very own ears (which would be more inspirational if you spoke Latin yourself). 

Maybe you step into a crowd and walk into the great, original Globe Theater.  One of Shakespeare’s famous plays is about to be performed, and you’re here for it!

Alright, well, I can’t offer you a time machine.  But I can offer you the next best thing.  You can learn about these famous people, learn about their lives, their hopes, and their aspirations.  Sometimes the best roadmaps for our own lives come from looking at others successful lives. 

Meet Socrates the famous philosopher of Greece, or spend some time with Benjamin Franklin.  There are hundreds of inspirational people out there – and now is your chance to meet them!

These Modern Times

We’ve all seen it and we all know it’s coming.  Debt is rising, jobs are evaporating, our footing is feeling pretty unstable.  Now is the time to get involved in preparing.  Things are going to change – so why not help them change for the better?

No matter where you stand right now, it won’t hurt to get more involved.  Get educated about the issues – it’s hard to overcome what you don’t understand.  “The Great Debt Crisis Ahead: How to Prepare and Prosper” by Harry S. Dent, Jr. is one great option to help you better understand how to survive this financial crisis, “Entreleadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches” by Dave Ramsey, or "Midas Touch: Why Some Entrepreneurs Get Rich - and Why Most Don't" by Donald J. Trump and Robert T. Kiyosaki.  Learn from stories about people who know what they’re doing and can give good advice, because they’ve been through the same struggles. 

Learn more, and stop feeling intimidated by something you don’t know how to handle.  Now you can take your life into your own hands!

Ghost Stories

You’re sitting around the camp fire, it’s late.  The fire crackles in front of you, casting shadows into the dark woods.  Now it’s time for the ghost stories.  Everyone crowds in close, wrapped up in blankets, a few brave souls darting over to the car to grab marshmallows or gram crackers when they run out.

Now the ghost stories begin.  Within minutes you can hear a twig breaking behind you, something is moaning, you can feel eyes on you.  You have to stay up and tell more ghost stories because you’re all too scared to go to bed!

Can there be anything better?

Now you can listen to these stories read to you.  Ready to be scared silly?  Listen to a great selection of ghost stories.  Or experience hair raising terror as you experience the horror of stories like “The Invisible Man” by H. G. Wells, or “Halfway to the Grave,” the first of Jeaniene Frost’s thriller series. 

Relish in the terror!

Educate the Cupcake

On a plate before you sits a large, moist, chocolate cupcake with thick dark brown frosting and sprinkles.  Just smelling it nearly hypnotizes you.  On the other side of the plate is a carrot and a celery stick. Which are you going to pick up and devour?  - the cupcake, right?

In my mind I keep thinking there has to be a better way to go about this – but carrots just don’t seem to measure up to chocolate.  (I suppose it would help if the cupcake was small, dry, and burnt). 

However – do not despair.  Healthy eating can be fun and delicious.  Just ask Mark Hyman MD, author of “Ultrametabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss,” or listen to “The End of Overeating”  by David A. Kessler MD.  Visit the Ambling Books website and find out what you can do to have a healthier body and maintian happy tastebuds. 

Instead of a cupcake, you don’t have to eat a dry rice cake – unless you like those.  Find a fun balance between deserts, and sporting a body you can be proud of!

Halloween Prep

He’d always been a little bit weird – but when he woke up with a new body, that was weird.  Frankenstein, the traditional monster of Halloween.  Learn his real story, the one where he isn’t trying to be a monster, but ends up as one. 

Or, another Halloween monster – hear the story of the vampire who started it all, Dracula.

Search through the hundreds of Mysteries and Thrillers available with the Ambling book audiobook player.  Have you ever wondered about Mister Hyde – or Doctor Jekyll?  Now’s your chance to learn more.

Break out the Halloween stories just in time – Happy October!

In the Future . . .

Do you ever wonder about your future?  What is the world going to be like in a few centuries – or even in a few years?  While none of us know exactly what is going to happen, and when, many of us have made guesses.  Star Trek made an excellent guess when it exhibited the “pre-cellphone,” although we are still working on the lightsabers used in Star Wars. 

Ambling Books provides a “killer” array of Sci-Fi audiobooks.  Join the excitement by listening to Star Trek itself, or George Orwell’s class classic “Animal Farm.”

On a more realistic side - one excellent choice is #1 New York Times bestselling author Michael Lewis’ “Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World.”   Enjoy a different-world-reality, or in-your-face-realism on your phone or computer!     

Rain, Rain, Any Day

It’s raining; the weather is going the whole two bits with lighting flashing in the sky and thunder booming.  Scholars say that weather like this will make you depressed, but I can’t stop laughing.

I’m listening to one of Ambling Book’s audiobooks right now.  The tale of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain continues:

She told me all about the bad place, and I said I wished I was there. She got mad then, but I didn't mean no harm.  All I wanted was to go somewheres; all I wanted was a change, I warn't particular.  She said it was wicked to say what I said; said she wouldn't say it for the whole world; she was going to live so as to go to the good place.  Well, I couldn't see no advantage in going where she was going, so I made up my mind I wouldn't try for it.  But I never said so, because it would only make trouble, and wouldn't do no good.

Spend an enjoyable night sitting around the living room with friends and family listening to a good book, or chuckling to yourself as you commute to work. 

AmblingBooks.com provides hundreds of delightful comedies, ranging from Eleanor H. Porter’s novel “Pollyanna” to Chris Ewan’s delightful tale “The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam.”  A good audiobook will make the difference between a drab early morning and a day that starts off good and just keeps getting better!

Lost in a Good Book

Jimmy bounces up and down on the big blue sofa, making it squeal.  He stares forwards, his eyes fixed on a small black rectangle sitting in an i-box.  Roger stands next to him, lifting his hand up every few seconds to wave it in his brother’s direction, “stop jumping all over the place, I can’t hear.” 

As the story flows out of the i-pod both boys finally stop moving, both frozen in place – their minds lost in a different world.  After a few minutes they both shift, looking around as though just coming out of a trance.  The climax of the story is over, the hero and heroine are safe, and the boys are just now wondering why they were staring so fixedly at the i-pod. 

Such is the power of a good book.  If a book is good enough it sometimes seems magical.  There are many times when I have gotten lost in a book, only to look up at the clock hours later and realize how much time has gone by.  How many movies can you count where you’ve watched an old wizard reading out of a dusty old spell book, or a wicked witch cackling over her spell book?

On a more realistic side, books seem magical because they can tame a carload of bored kids, or keep your mind busy on a job that usually only keeps your hands moving.  Experience the action by visiting Ambling Books and exploring some of their great audiobooks.

Young Love: True, Tragic, or Silly?

Today I want to start with a question.  Many of you have heard of Shakespeare, and many of you have read him, and some of you have understood some of what he has written.  So I want to ask if there is a point to his Romeo and Juliet, and if there is a point – what that point is.

I have read and watched this play multiple times, and I love it.  Being a romantic, I think it is terribly sad and fulfilling at the same time that Romeo and Juliet die because of their love for one another. 

A friend cannot stand Romeo or Juliet.  They seem too fickle to her, to young (which they certainly are) to be mature enough to make a life-time commitment like marriage mean anything.  My friend loves to point out that this play was meant as a comedy, that it was comical how Romeo and Juliet fell so deeply in love so quickly . . . but they were star-crossed lovers.

Perhaps I’m overthinking this and there is no deeper meaning – maybe it’s “just a play.”  But there have been so many remakes of Romeo and Juliet: West Side story, Romeo + Juliet, and hundreds of books which seem to follow the same or a similar plot line. 

Listen to Romeo and Juliet's tragic story from the Ambling Books audiobook player - reliving their heart break or hearing it for the first time – and make your own decision.

Favorite Stories

Today I want to discuss favorite books.  I love reading and so I have hundreds of favorite books, but one of my favorites is “Tarzan” by Edgar Rice Burroughs.  I listened to this book on the Ambling Books audiobook player and I can’t decide whether I liked listening to the book more or watching my brothers listen to the book.  All four siblings would be standing up in the room, the younger ones practically jumping up and down during the intense scenes. 

Another favorite is “The Good Thief's Guide to Amsterdam” by Chris Ewan.  This book puts a whole new twist on Detective-Crime stories as it is told from the thief’s perspective.  I love this book because it is surprising and fresh, featuring a crook who is so funny that you can’t help but like him. 

Everyone has favorite books, and even different genres that they tend to be drawn to – as you can see, I tend to magnetize to adventure books.   What are some of your favorite stories to read or listen to?

About Ambling Books

Do you know the difference between an elephant and a mouse?  Of course you do – and the difference between Ambling Books audiobook player and any other audiobook player should be just as obvious. 

Ambling Books is all about making your listening effective, enjoyable, and easy.  The audiobook player provides:

• Chapter navigation

• Bookmarking

• Automatic Play History Tracking

• Undo and Redo Buttons

The Ambling Books audiobook player is convenient and quick.  This audiobook player is designed specifically to play audiobooks and includes many features made for frustration-free, delightful hours of entertainment.

Come explore the amblingbooks.com store.  Try one of the thousands of audiobooks available, both free books, as well as an excellent selection of modern books for good prices.  Get these books right off of the internet, using your Android, iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, or even your home computer.